who do you think you are

I was watching Find My Past last night and was fascinated to learn that the Christmas truce in WWI went on for days, sometimes weeks, and that there had been semi truces prior to that anyway [soldiers holding up placards saying 'don't shoot for a while, we're having breakfast' etc]. The higher echelons decided they had to stop it, as it wasn't the way to win a war, but no officers were court martialed over it as they couldn't afford to lose any. Also that some soldiers were shot during the truce, often by Prussians who were far more aggressive that the Bavarians, or sometimes because someone would shoot in another area and others would just let rip at whoever they were close to because of it. Found it interesting because I'd just been to a WWI exhibition at a local country park. Research had been done to find the history behind the names on a war memorial in that village and most of the soldiers didn't actual live there, or even come from there, but had links with the village in various ways. I thought war memorials always had the name of residents of the area. I've bought a booklet about the life of a man who worked on the estate, survived the war and lived into his 90's; thankfully someone in the village said he must write down his memoirs [which he did]. His wife also worked at the house so there is a parallel account of what it was like back home. The exhibition was actually in the hall of the house where the wrestling scene in Women in Love took place. [another thing that I found really touching was that dogs carrying medicine were trained to find wounded and dying soldiers after a battle and that they would not leave their side until someone found them ].

The Derek Jacobi one is supposed to be really interesting.
I am disappointed that so far they have picked on just one or two people to study. We used to get a whole range- going further back.

Yes, I hope the Derek Jacobi one will be better, and should go back further if they are tracing his Huguenot ancestry.
I may pick up some tips from that one!

I thought the series would be helpful to anyone doing family history research, giving helpful tips and pointers about where to look if you reached a brick wall, as well as researching way back into the family history of these supposedly famous people.

However, this new series is repetitive and hardly delving back into history at all to go back just a couple of generations.

Was just going to say that the Derek Jacobi one had caught my eye; shall certainly watch that one.

Maybe it did, Lona. We do not see all the research.
Derek Jacobi this week, on his Huguenot ancestry.
Will that be interesting enough?

It used to be interesting because they researched much farther back, but just concentrating on one person, or two in Jane Seymour's case, isn't quite the same. Also, I don't think she should have decided who she wanted to know about, surely the programme should evolve as it goes along.

Is an entire programme on Military service in WW2 realy social history ? yes it is history but not week after week please

There seems to be a great deal more time spent on individual ancestors and WW2. involving a lot of standing/wandering around. Not sure if this is because there isn't anyone more interesting, or because they can't afford to pay for any more research. Getting a bit bored.

I don't think it matters who the celebrity is. I had to google Paul Hollywood to find out who he was. It is whether they unearth anything interesting that matters.

I did not like Jane Seymour - and to be honest had no idea who she was. She really fancied herself, as when she squinted at a document and said "Even I cannot read that", as if she was a superior being and if she couldn't read it then no-one else would be able to.

I find anyone's social history fascinating.

Touché DJ I wouldn't hold that against you

A good, honest retort!

You underestimate me Anya I'm afraid; I'm not like that. I'm sorry that you think it.

It's a grade 11 listed building, so it could be turned back into a workhouse. The history of workhouses is becoming quite well known at the moment. One of my mother's cousins was a teacher in a workhouse. Isn't there a thread on here about Southwell, which has the best workhouse in the country, where the programme about Victorian forebears was recorded, with Ann Widdecombe among others?

Believe it or not, I do not care if you read my posts or not, or what stories your mother in law told you.
The man in Australia was very much alive the last time I saw him, less than ten years ago. If you are going to comment make sure you get the facts correct.

But that's your opinion of my already Tegan so why should I bother to please?

That's not nice Anya. I found it interesting, as did, I would imagine, a lot of other people . The comment was uncalled for imo .

'And could easily be turned back into a workhouse...'

Give that sort of gumph a rest.

Thank you for sharing your story about some long dead 'man from Australia' but you're mistaking me for someone who's interested. My late MiL used to regale me with sad tales of people I didn't know too, you'd have loved her

PS don't take this too personally, I had a bump on the head earlier so I'm not quite my usual sunny and caring little self!

Give what a rest, Anya?
The houses I am talking about were the slums of York, and were knocked down when Joseph Rowntree built the village at New Earswick to replace them. One of my aunts lived there and was moved to New Earswick, where she met her husband.
The house I lived in was owned by the Rowntree family at one time.
So you are not bothered by social history, but I am.
I researched the house we lived in, as it used to belong to the cornmill at the back. A man from Australia came to stay with us, as he'd lived in our house during the war. It had been turned into a boys orphanage. He ran away and went to see his uncle who handed him back to the authorities.
While they were deciding what to do with him, he had to sleep in the workhouse above the mortuary. He didn't run away again!
I was quite upset by that story, on his behalf. He told us how many boys had lived in each room.

On Monday I was shown a photo of my great grandmother that I'd never seen and that, along with a photo of me and my father when I was a baby had me in tears.It felt so strange to be in the area where my family are buried yesterday; even though I couldn't find the actual grave I felt such a connection to the place; an almost tangible feeling [strangely but not surprisingly in the heart area] that I still have, even though I'm now back home.I know that sounds awfully melodramatic but it's true.

I have burst into tears when researching my ancestors , think it depends if one thinks of these dead ancestors as just names or accept they were living human beings with the same emotions as us. I have researched workhouses for articles published in a family history publication and have transcribe records for a Welsh archive. Also researched mental hospitals. If one reads of a couple married over sixty years, too old to continue working, evicted from their home and put in the workhouse, read their pleas that they are not separated , read the dismissal by the workhouse comittee , then read the wife jumped from a dormatory window , was buried in a paupers grave and her husband forbidden to attend her funeral because she had committed such a grace sin , takes a tough person not to cry

Give it a rest Dj

I used to live in the area that Una Stubbs was researching.
I wouldn't have blamed her if she had burst into tears, having ancestors in the workhouse, which is now student flats, by the way, and could easily be turned back into a workhouse, complete with mortuary.

It seems to be a condition of the contract that they all have a weep at some time.

Mind you, when I found out that one ancestor had died (in 1891) in Sussex just after an exceptionally long spell of cold weather, his death certificate blamed "the cold". That information went home. I didn't burst into tears over it, though.

It's all the repetition in these sorts of programmes that drives me mindless. Long Lost Family is the same. After each advert they seem to have to repeat much of what went before, just in case your either didn't understand it the first time or have had an amnesiac attacked during the break.

Personally I think it's because the whole lot could be condensed into a 15-minut snippet but has to be drawn out as long as possible.

And all this hand wringing and agonising over long dead ancestors. I thought Una Stubbs would actually burst into tears.